Afghan governor says civilians killed in U.S. raid

KABUL (Reuters) - U.S.-led coalition troops, backed by air
strikes, killed 28 Taliban insurgents in southwestern
Afghanistan, but six to eight civilians were also killed in the
operation, the provincial governor said on Monday.

Sunday's raid was aimed at a Taliban meeting in the Khash
Rud district of Nimroz province on Sunday, provincial governor
Ghulam Dastagir Azad told reporters.

"The operation was carried out on the basis of a tip-off.
Twenty-eight Taliban and between six to eight civilians were
killed in it," he said, without giving further details.

The U.S. military confirmed the mission, but said nothing
of civilian casualties. It said the operation was aimed at
disrupting militant activities in Nimroz.

The issue of civilians killed by foreign troops is a
sensitive one in Afghanistan as it further undermines public
support for the presence of around 71,000 international troops
in the country.

In the first six months of this year, 698 civilians were
killed, 255 of them by Afghan government and foreign forces. In
the same period last year, a total of 430 civilians were
killed, the United Nations said.

In the latest operation, U.S.-led coalition forces
identified numerous militants armed with AK-47s,
rocket-propelled grenades and hand grenades, the U.S. military
said in a statement.

"Multiple militant groups engaged the force in a compound
and in nearby areas. Coalition forces then killed them using
small-arms fire. Two additional groups of armed militants
maneuvered against the force and were killed by air strikes,"
it said.

A Taliban spokesman said no member of the group was killed
and the casualties were civilians participating in a party.
Continued...